Fashion and fundraising for BC Cancer

Late fall ushers in a time of joy and fellowship as our calendars fill up with family and community gatherings, fundraising events and dressy celebrations. November brings the BC Cancer Foundation’s annual Jingle Mingle fundraising event that raises money to support research and enhancements to patient care at BC Cancer in Victoria. For this issue’s fashion story, Boulevard teamed up with BC Cancer – Victoria to present a twist on the classic, dressy event look. Here, we present individuals in our community who are involved with BC Cancer or who have faced a cancer diagnosis themselves, revealing how these experiences have changed their outlooks on life.

“My new ‘normal’ has led me to make decisions I never used to make. I am constantly doing things I’ve never done before, as well as taking advantage of normal everyday life of being happy and healthy and realizing how precious life is. I don’t sweat the little stuff and I’m learning not to stress about things that are out of my control. I focus on what makes me truly happy and spend time with people who lift me up and bring more light to my life. I realized that if I can beat cancer, I can do anything.”

“Ever since I was a young kid, magic was always something that felt like the impossible was in fact possible if you truly believed. Growing up, three of my grandparents had cancer. Two of them passed away from it but my grandmother beat it. Nothing is impossible if you truly believe it.”

“Three words come to mind when I think about how surviving cancer has changed me: perspective, clarity and reality. Reality that you are not invincible, that before cancer there were days and moments that were undervalued and taken for granted. Reality that one day there won’t be any more days. Clarity of mind, of body and of the people surrounding you: my strong and fabulous daughters, my fantastic husband, my parents, friends and so many more. Perspective is a constant work in progress. Shortly after treatment and news of a good outcome, it was easy to hold on to perspective: literally every minute I felt grateful and awake, alive and unstoppable, and unshaken by day-to-day stressors, big or small. Several years later, perspective is there but it sits in my back pocket and I have to remember to pull it out. With this gift of moving forward, I try and give back to my family, my friends, community and, of course, to the BC Cancer Agency. “

“We are so blessed to have the BC Cancer Agency in Victoria working tirelessly to help patients, and importantly, trying to find ways to get rid of this scourge of our society. They do awesome work and, along with the BC Cancer Foundation, are so worthy of everyone’s support.”

Ralf and Miranda Mundel

Cancer Survivor, Sponsors and Corporate Donors

On Ralf:

Classic with a twist.!

White pleated shirt ($386) by Tiger of Sweden, wool blazer ($930) by John Vavartos, and black suit pants ($169) by Matinique, all from Hughes Clothing.

“Helping people through their cancer journey is a very humbling thing to witness, and very telling of what’s truly important in life. No one ever tells me they wish they’d worked more hours, made more money or dated more people. It’s almost alway the same, regret of not spending more time with the people they love, friends and family, or regret of not having seen more of the world. So I’ve learned not to hold back in life; the future is uncertain for all of us. Although many of these men and women are going through the most difficult time of their lives, they often find strength and resilience they didn’t even know they had. And for many, that new found strength carries with them forever. “

“Cancer is a cause I care about deeply, and volunteering provides me with a sense of purpose. Almost everyone in BC has been affected, whether directly or indirectly, by cancer, and being on the Advisory Council for the BC Cancer Foundation I am able to give something back to an organization that has impacted so many people. My eyes are open, wide open, to the tremendous things happening at the BC Cancer centre and with cancer treatment and research as a whole. Volunteering for the BC Cancer Foundation is good for my soul, it is a reminder to think outward and to give thanks. I will forever be changed by the experience.”